Ill. Panel Chides State Over 'Absurd' Reading Of Wage Law

By Celeste Bott

An Illinois appellate court had choice words Tuesday for the Illinois Department of Labor's argument that an amendment to the Wage Payment and Collection Act deems certain corporate officers "employers" that can be held personally liable for employees' unpaid wages, calling the agency's interpretation "legally unsound" and "unjust."

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Rapper Says There's 'No World' Where He'd Pay Fired Manager

By Lauraann Wood

Chance the Rapper never discussed paying his former manager commissions for three years after their relationship ended, and "there's no world" in which he would agree to such a payment arrangement given his position and reputation in the music industry, the rapper told Illinois jurors Wednesday.

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13 State AGs Urge EPA To Walk Back 'Compliance First' Memo

By Rachel Riley

Attorneys general for New York, Massachusetts, Washington and 10 other states have called on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to rescind a December memo unveiling a "compliance first" approach to enforcement, arguing the strategy sidelines staff expertise and creates "bureaucratic bottlenecks" that will ultimately enable polluters.

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Ed. Dept. Flouting Mental Health Funding Order, States Claim

By Gianna Ferrarin

The U.S. Department of Education is flouting orders that it fund K-12 mental health grants given to public schools by only partially funding the grants and threatening to withhold remaining funds, a group of state attorneys general told a Washington federal court.

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EPA Pushes For Win In Solar Grant Fight

By Tom Lotshaw

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency told a Washington federal judge it reasonably terminated billions of dollars in grants for solar energy projects after Congress passed the 2025 federal budget bill, so a coalition of states can't challenge its decision.

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Abbott Investors Ink $40M Deal Over Infant Formula Crisis

By Emily Field

Shareholders who brought a derivative suit over Abbott Laboratories' management of the 2022 infant formula crisis asked an Illinois judge on Tuesday to approve a settlement that includes $40 million in investments in food safety and corporate reforms, and $15.85 million in attorney fees.

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Ill. Panel Suggests Suspension Of Atty Over Fraud

By Corey Rothauser

An Illinois attorney disciplinary panel has recommended a five-month suspension for a southern Illinois criminal defense lawyer after finding that he knowingly participated in fraudulent real estate loan transactions and helped another attorney carry out the scheme.

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Illinois Court Rejects Challenge To Chicago Dispensary Permit

By Mike Curley

An Illinois appeals court has rejected a neighbors group's challenge to a special-use permit granted to a Chicago dispensary, finding that a lower court correctly found that the group lacked standing to challenge the zoning board's decision.

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Temu Users Join Customer Push For IEEPA Tariff Refunds

By Jack McLoone

Online marketplace Temu must refund customers for passed-on costs related to the Trump administration's now-invalidated International Emergency Economic Powers Act tariffs, a consumer leading a proposed nationwide class action told an Illinois state court.

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Series

Law School's Missed Lessons: The Human Element

Law school teaches you to quickly apply intellect and logic when handling a legal issue, but every fact pattern also involves a person, making the ability to balance expertise with empathy critical to the growth of relationships with clients, colleagues and adversaries, says Rachel Adcox at Adcox Strategies.

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Analysis

Texas Biz Court's Likely Role In Patent Fights Becoming Clear

By Dani Kass

The Texas Business Court has released its first opinion exploring when intellectual property can be used to create jurisdiction, and attorneys say the decision involving state trade secret law offers insight into when patent matters can be pursued there.

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Conn. Justices Won't Hear Ex-Alex Jones Atty's Ethics Case

By Andrea Keckley

The Connecticut Supreme Court will not hear a challenge to the two-week suspension of Alex Jones' former lawyer, leaving intact an intermediate Appellate Court decision affirming the pared-down punishment surrounding his law firm's handling of Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre victims' personal information.

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Calif. Bills Would Reform Litigation Funding, Client Recruiting

By Emily Sawicki

Two new bills introduced to the California Assembly this week seek to impose reforms on the state's legal industry, including adding mandatory disbarment for attorneys convicted of felony "capping" — or illegally paying for client recruitment — and blocking corporate litigation funders from influencing cases.

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Senator Unveils Draft AI Bill Intended To Wipe Out State Regs

By Hailey Konnath

Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., on Wednesday released a draft of proposed legislation that would override a "patchwork" of state artificial intelligence regulations, touting the proposal as protecting "children, creators, conservatives and communities" and slamming the state regulations as hindering "AI innovation."

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Biotech Investor Blames Pierce Atwood For Messy Asset Sale

By Julie Manganis

A Ukrainian billionaire who was recently ordered to pay other investors in a failed genetic testing company more than $1.8 million in damages is blaming the Pierce Atwood LLP lawyers who advised him on what a court later found to be a "fundamentally unfair" forced asset sale.

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Powell Says He Won't Make Fed Exit While Facing DOJ Probe

By Jon Hill

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday that he will stay on as a board member of the central bank if he remains under U.S. Department of Justice investigation when his term as Fed chairman runs out this spring.

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